Fur-skin strip material and method for producing the same

Abstract

A fur-skin strip material consisting of yarn-like fur-skin strips that are knitted, crochete or woven to form a fabric and the like. The fur-skin strip material is fine, smooth and soft and can be produced in an industrial scale at a lower cost. The yarn-like fur-skin strip is made by cutting a hairy-coated skin of a fur-bearing animal. The skin will be placed, the fur side down, on a supporting device that has numerous needles so that the leather side of the skin will be made substantially flat, enabling only the leather side of the skin to be applied with a laser beam or water jet and thereby cutting the skin uniformly into fine strips of furry material.

What is claimed is: 
     
       1. A method for producing narrow, leather strips with fur on one side from animal skins having a leather side and a fur side useful in the production of fur yarns made from twisted fur-skin strips comprising the steps of: (a) placing a fur-skin on numerous upright needles of a skin holding device such that the fur side of said fur-skin faces downward and the leather side of the fur-skin faces upward so as to make the surface of the leather side substantially flat; and   (b) cutting said fur-skin into a plurality of strips by irradiating the leather side of said fur-skin with a moving laser beam under conditions whereby said laser beam cuts the leather of said fur-skin but does not substantially cut fur on the fur-side of said fur-skin.   
     
     
       2. The method according to claim 1, wherein said leather side of the fur-skin is irradiated with the carbon dioxide gas laser beam of 30 to 50 W at the cutting speed of 2 to 30 m/min. 
     
     
       3. A method for producing a fur-skin strip material as in claim 1 wherein said skin holding device comprises: (a) a frame body having a bottom and brims that project inward from the top edges of sidewalls of said frame body;   (b) a needle plate having a plurality of needles planted inside of said frame body, the distal ends of said needles providing a flat level plane and the height of said needles being aligned with the height of said brim, and said needle plate being provided with numerous small holes where air passes through; and   (c) a means for evacuating said unit, thereby holding said fur-skin against said needle plate.   
     
     
       4. A skin-holding device for laser cutting comprising: (a) a frame body having a bottom and brims that project inward from the top edges of sidewalls of said frame body;   (b) a needle plate having a plurality of needles planted inside of said frame body, the distal ends of said needles providing a flat level plane and the height of said needles being aligned with the height of said brim, and said needle plate being provided with numerous small holes where air passes through; and   (c) a means for evacuating said unit thereby holding said fur-skin against said needle plate.